Four Ways to Keep Your Dog Safe on Halloween

Dogs in Halloween Costumes Halloween may be full of tricks and treats for humans, but the holiday does not hold the same appeal for our canine counterparts. In fact, Halloween can be a downright frightening time for dogs. Paul Mann founder and CEO Fetch! Pet Care provides the following tips to keep your dogs safe this Halloween season:

Tricks are for kids. While ghouls and goblins provide entertainment, your dog does not understand the person behind that mask is their friend. Dogs are creatures of habit and can easily become frightened, aggressive or agitated by the unaccustomed sights and sounds of costumed visitors. So when the trick ‘or’ treaters come knocking at your door, it’s best to keep your canine friend contained indoors in a quiet, comfortable area of your home. Also, make sure all dogs are wearing collars and ID tags in case they get spooked and escape your home or yard.
Candy is not a treat for our dogs. Sweets may look appealing to dogs, but candy – especially chocolate – can be downright toxic to animals. Keep your candy bowl out of reach from dogs and make sure your children sift through their bags at a table where Fido can’t sneak a piece. Candy wrappers can be just as harmful. Instead, purchase a box of your dogs’ favorite treats for them to munch on. If you believe your dog has ingested a harmful item, call your veterinarian or the Animal Control hotline immediately.
Decorations should shock Trick ‘or’ Treaters – not our dogs. Keep all electrical cords and decorations out of reach. One chomp on an electrical cord could have a potentially deadly outcome. dogs can also become tangled and injured by dangling cords or decorations. You can purchase plastic tubing or casing at your local hardware store to provide some level of safety. Keep lit candles and jack-o-lanterns out of reach and on stable ground. Your dog could accidentally bump the pumpkin, resulting in fire damage to the home – and potentially to your dog.
Costumes are constraining. Yes, your dog may look adorable as a dinosaur or Cleopatra, but dogs can feel constrained and uncomfortable in costumes. Many costumes also have loose accessories that could be hazardous if chewed or swallowed. If you do dress your dog, find a costume that has few accessories and is loose fitting such as a dog specific costume.

As an alternative to keeping your dogs at home this Halloween, Fetch! Pet Care has the ability to provide a safe and quiet overnight boarding, day or evening care environment at one of their 5,000 dog sitter’s homes across the country. As a way to support the cause of dog safety on Halloween and throughout the year at homes and in shelters, Fetch! dog Care will be donating a portion of their Halloween revenue to Best Friends Animal Society, a partner in dog care and safety. For more information on Best Friends, visit http://www.bestfriends.org.

For more info: Paul Mann is the Founder and CEO of Fetch! Pet Care, the largest pet sitting franchise in the United States. For more information, go to www.FetchpetCare.com or call 1-866-FETCH-ME. Fetch! Pet Care has several Tampa area locations: Bradenton, Carrollwood, Lakewood Ranch, Land O Lakes, Long Beach Key, Lutz, Odessa, Sarasota, Siesta Key, and Trinity.

Dog-Fun.com "Your Dog's Favorite Website"